SKT works on driverless vehicles

SK Telecom's self-driving car

By Kang Seung-woo

Busan -- SK Telecom made the most of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Telecom World to show off its self-driving technology.

The annual telecom fair that drew more than 430 companies around the world came to an end late last month.

During the four-day event, the nation's largest wireless provider displayed its self-driving car based on Hyundai Motor's Genesis G80 luxury sedan at the front of its exhibition booth that was the biggest attraction.

SK is one of a few Korean companies making massive investment to develop an autonomous vehicle. Others include Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, Naver and its telecom rival KT.

"Many people are now gaining interest in driverless cars and the number of such vehicles will increase from 2020, which will bring a huge change to our life," an SK official said.

Ahead of its ITU display, SK's self-driving car successfully completed a test-run on the highway, taking a step closer toward the development of a full autonomous vehicle.

According to the Seoul-based company, its self-driving automobile ran 26 kilometers, Sept. 21, with an average speed of 47 kilometers per hour (km/h) from Seoul to Suwon with two passengers on board. The car travelled at a speed of up to 80 km/h in accordance with the government regulation on test-driving of autonomous vehicles.

It also changed speed throughout the process, and even gave way to other cars at junctions, the official added.

A large screen located above the autonomous car showed video footage of the test run that captured passengers reading books or taking their hands off the wheel, which drew attention from global ICT officials as well as visitors.

In July, SK Telecom received a license from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport for testing its autonomous driving car on local roads. Its Vehicle Tech Lab has been working closely with diverse partners to develop self-driving technologies such as artificial intelligence, sensors, communication and route determination and tracing. They include a Seoul National University team led by Professor Lee Kyeong-soo, Nvidia and LG Electronics,

"Although we are a bit of a late starter in the development of driverless vehicles compared with global leaders, our convergence technology helps to make progress in the market," the official said.

"For safer and more efficient commercialization of autonomous vehicles, we plan to complete developing high-definition map next year."

According to SK, it plans to test-drive the self-driving car on more congested downtown roads in the future.

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